Machine for automatically sorting, evaluating, or accounting of perforated cards



Aug. 20, 1935. P, MANSEL 2,012,135

MACHINE FOR AUTOMATICALLY soRTING, EVALUATING 0R ACCOUNTING oF PERFORATED CARDS Filed June 22, 14928 RL of Ts MN EA VM L IM www( Patented Aug. 20, 1935 PATENT OFFICE MACHINE FOR AUTOMATICALLY SOBTING,

EVALUATING, B ACCOUNTING 0F PEB- FORATED CARDS Paul Mansel, Berlin-Charlottenburg, Germany. I assignor, by mesne assignments, to Remington Rand Inc., a corporation of Delaware Application June 22, 1928, Serial No. 281,588

In Germany June 28, 1927 'I Claims- (Cl. 209-110) My invention relates to improvements in machines or apparatus for automatically sorting, evaluating or accounting of records such as cards or strips of paper, and more specifically to control mechanisms for such machines.

In sorting machines for cards with perforation symbols control mechanisms are known, which in a definite, continuously repeating sequence prepare the control of guide members for the cards and only initiate the necessary motion of the guide members by the aid of electro-magnets after the closure of contacts controlled directly by the perforations of the cards. These mechanisms are very complicated in construction and their range of application is very limited. Even when applied to sorting machines they have the drawback, that the number of kinds of cards sortable in this manner to comply with practical requirements cannot be increased beyond a certain limit without endangering the reliability of operationv and without making the individual parts of the mechanism excessively large.

The object of my invention is to provide an electrical control device for sorting, evaluating or accounting machines and apparatus of simplel construction and great reliability, which is applicable to all machines and apparatus equipped with feeler or selector lever contact devices or similar arrangements and which need not be directly controlled by the perforations or other symbols of the card.

This object is according to my invention attained by means of a contact drum or cylinder provided with rows of contacts distributed over its circumference, each row forming part of one of a plurality of normally open circuits which include contact brushes or other contact closing means, preferably arranged in a row, in con--v junction with contacting devices or switches controlled by the cards, each of such circuits being adapted to control the electrical driving or switch gear of the machines or apparatus, and arranged to be closed upon actuation of certain of the contacting devices when a card perforated in a predetermined manner is fed to the machine. Preferably a separate contact drum with brushes or contact closing means is provided for each set of feeler levers coordinated to the combination values of a decade number, an identification value or the like, all the contact drums being connected in series through their end contacts. The contacts in the rows located axially to the drum are thus combined into combinations controlled feeler lever contacting or switch devices belonging to them, each of which combinawith the card# tions is associated with a certain numerical value.

In the drawing aiiixed hereto an embodiment of my invention is illustrated diagrammatically by wayof example, as applied to a sorting machine.

In the drawing Fig. 1, a development of a contact drum or cylinder withconnection diagram, the drum being connected with six feeler or selector levers by sliding brushes and adapted for the setting of 63 numerical values.

Fig. '2, a side-elevation of this drum,

Fig. 3, a development with connection diagram of an arrangement with four contact drums for setting tens values formed'by combination values,

Fig. 4, the side elevation of the contact drums shown in Fig. 3,

Fig. 5, a perforated card in its position on the guide plate of a sorting or evaluating machine in plan, and

Fig. 6, a section along line A--B oi Fig. 5 with the feeler lever contact arrangement.

Referring to Fig. 1, I is the shell or cover of the contact drum 2, upon which are located, in rows and diiferentlylspaced, contact faces 3 in the form of salient plates. A number of these contacts are connected by leads 4 in the interior of the drum 2. Within reach of the circumfer- .ence of the drum 2 there are located a row of contact brushes 5 parallel to the spindle 1 in such a manner, that they slide upon the contact faces 3 of the drum. lThe contact brushes 5 are preferably rigidly mounted at the machine framing or any other stationary part 6, while the drum is adapted to revolve around its spindle 1. By means of a pointer 8 attached to the drum 2 and a stationary graduated disc 9` any desired row of contacts may be brought in contact with the brushes 5. It will be understood, however, thatl the arrangement may be such, that the contact drum 2 is stationary and the brush carrier 6 revolves around the drum 2, the pointer 8 being then preferably mounted upon the brush carrier 6 and adapted to move over the.scale of a stationary disc 9. From the contact brushes 5 conductors lead to the contact springs of the feeler lever contact arrangement. In the arrangement illustrated each of-the feeler levers I2 located in a row below the guide I I for the perforated cards II) controls the central one of the three contact springs I4, I5, I6 by means of an insulated pin I3.

The central contact spring or switch I5 is ac-k cording to the position of the feeler lever I2 forced against the nose of the upper spring I4 or that of the lower spring I6. 'Ihe central spring I5 of the feeler lever contact arrangement located at the extreme left in Fig. 1 is connected to the positive pole and the contact brush l of the same drum at the extreme right to the winding I1 of any driving or control member of the sorting or evaluating machine. leads directly or through other driving or control members to the negative terminal of a source of current.

In the construction illustrated in the Figures 3 and 4 of the drawing there are provided in series four contact drums Il, I9, 20, 2| with brushes l and feeler lever contact arrangements I2, I4, Il, I6, each of which permits the setting of the values from to 9. In these contact drums Il to 2| the insulating shell is again indicated by the reference letter I, the individual contact faoes placed in rows with l, their connecting leads with 4, the contact brushes with i, the brush carriers with I, the spindles of the drums with 1, the pointers with 8 and the graduated discs with 2. s I1 is again the winding of a driving or control member of the machine to be controlled.

The feeler levers I2 are located in a row transverse to the travel direction of the card below the guide track II for the perforated card. For each vertical row of lthe card there is provided a feeler lever I2 with contact springs I4, I5, II.

According to the division of the perforated card II) four or more feeler levers I2 are always combined into a group and their contact springs I4, I5, I6 brought in connection with the slide brushes 5 of one of the contact drums 2, Il, Il, 20 or 2|. Each of these contact drums Il to 2| may according to Figs. 1 and 2 be used by itself or, according to Figs. 3 and 4 in connection with contact drums of like kind or, as indicated by the dotted lines between Figs. 1 and 3 in connection with contact drums which diier from one another in regard to the number of the adjustable lvalues. Of the systems of contact drums illustrated the contact drums I8 to 2| of Figs. 3 and 4 may, for instance, be employed for the groups of columns 22 to 25 of the card III in Fig. 5 and the contact drum 2 in Figs. 1 and 2 forthe groups of columns 26 of the card III.

'I'he mode of operation of my improved control apparatus is as follows: prior to the commencement of the sorting or evaluation of cards or strips of paper I0 punched with perforation symbols, one or more of the contact drums of the machine or apparatus are set for the values according to which the cards or strips of paper should be sorted or evaluated. If, for instance the cards are to be sorted out, according to the values punched only in the group of columns 26, which in the illustrated example contain the value 20 in perforation symbols, the contact drum 2, which is employed in the present case to control sorting, is set at 20 and the contact drums Ii to 2| at 0. When sorting cards according to the values contained in all of the columns 22 to 2B, such as the cards III, which in the groups of columns 22, 2l, 24, 25 show the tens values 5, I, 4, I and in the group of columns 2B the value 20 in perforation symbols, the contact drum Il is set on the value 5, the drum I9 on the value'l, the drum 2Il on the value 4 and the drum 2| on the value l, as well as the drum 2 on the value 20.

If a card with the value 20 in the group of columns 26 of the card I0 passes through the machine, the third and fth feeler levers I2 of the contact drum arrangement 2 according to Fig. 1 pass through the perforation symbols 21 and 22 of the card III in Fig. 5 and cause the central From here a conductor4 springs Il to move into contact with the upper contact springs I4. In the contact arrangements which correspond with the column values 4 and Il, the central springs Il then make contact with the upper contact springs I4, while in the contact arrangements apportioned to the remaining column values I, 2, l and I2 the central springs Il are in contact with the lower springs I0. In the horizontal row of contacts I on the drum 2 coordinated to the value 20 (see horizontal row 20 in Fis. 1) the contacts are so arranged and are so connected with each other directly or through the switch contacts I4, Il and II, that at the moment when the card I 0 is searched by the feeler levers, a circuit is closed from the positive pole (see upper left-hand corner of Fig. 1) across some of the feeler lever contact springs I4, Il, Il as well as through some of the brushes l and across the contacts I of the row corresponding with the value 20 in predetermined sequence, to the winding I 'I and thence to the negative pole. Thus for every perforation value punched in the columns 26, the contacts 3 of the correspondingly numbered horizontal row of drum 2 are connected in series so as to close the circuit through the controlling element I1. This circuit will obviously be closed every time a card having the given value punched in columns 2t is fed to the machine.

In sorting cards with perforation symbols, which correspond with the number l I 4 I, the contact sets corresponding with the values I and 4 are in similar manner set at the contact drum I B, at the drum I9 the contact sets belonging to the values I and 2, at the drum 20 the contact set apportioned to the value 4 and at the drum 2| the contact set coordinated to the value 8, in such a manner, that the central springs I5 are placed against the upper contact springs I4, while in the remaining sets of contacts abut against the lower contact springs I 6.

'I'he contact drums I8 to 2| previously set for the values 5, 8, 4, l then close a circuit passing from the positive pole across individual contact springs I4, I5, I8, as well as contact brushes 5 and across the contacts 2 of the horizontal rows of the drums I -2I coordinated to the values 5, 3, 4 and l, as well as across the winding I I in the sequence shown in Fig. 3 to the negative pole. When, therefore, cards are to be sorted according to the perforation values in columns 22 to 28 inclusive, the machine thus becomes operative then only, when cards III with the values set on the contact drums 2, I8, I9, 2li, 2| in the individual groups of columns 22 to 28 are introduced through the card guide I I, since the contact drums are connected in series.

By a corresponding arrangement and connection of the individual contact drum 2, I8, I9, 20 and 2| and by increasing the number of contact drums and feeler lever contact sets I4, Il, II any desired number of sorts of cards may by means of the new control mechanism be picked out automatically from a large number of cards and sorted. In view of the fact that the feeding of the perforation values by the feeding levers I2 takes place in rows, it is possible to take up a plurality of values entered in different rows of the card of the same kind (for instance of the same account) in one operation, i. e. during a single passage of the respective card III through the machine, in its counting and calculating mechanism and to evaluate them, by adding up the values or entering the balance.

Various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention, and-I desir therefore, that only such limitations shall be placed thereon as are imposed by the prior art.

I claim as my invention:

l. An electric control device for machines and apparatus of the class described used in connection with records, comprising movable contact cylinders adjustable to diierent positions but stationary during normal operation, contacts on said cylinders, brushes adapted to engage said contacts, contact members connected with said brushes, switch members each movable to engage a contact member connected with onebrush or a contact member connected with a different brush, and feelers adapted for co, operation with the records and arranged to throw the respective switches into engagement with one or the other of two contact members according to the position of the respective feeler.

2. An electric control device for machines and apparatus of the class described used in connection with records, comprising movable contact cylinders adjustable to different positions but stationary during normal operation, rows oi contacts on said cylinders, feelers adapted for co-operation with the records, and circuits associated with said contacts and including switches actuated by said feelers, each switch being adapted, according to its position, to connect one or the other of two contacts into circuit, the recordengaging portions of said Ieelers being located in one row in such a manner that the same teeler will be enabled to select from one record and analyze in one operation, a plurality of values of like character.

3. An electric control device lor machines and apparatus of the class described used in connection with records, comprising movable contact cylinders adjustable to diierent positions but stationary during normal operation, contacts on said cylinders arranged to form predetermined combinations, and ieeler mechanism adapted for co-operation with the records and including switch members which according to their position will establish an electrical connection between adjoining contacts of the respective cylinder or break such connection.

4. An electric control device for machines and apparatus of the class described used in connection with records, comprising movable contact cylinders adjustable to different positions but stationary during normal operation, contacts on said cylinders, feelers adapted for co-operation with the records, circuits associated with said contacts, and switches controlled by said feelers and arranged to eilect different circuit connections according to the position oi' the respective feelers, said switches being arranged in groups each corresponding to the combination values of a denominational number or to an indicating value.

5. An electric control device for machines and apparatus of the class described used in connection with records, comprising movable contact cylinders adjustable to different positions but stationary during normal operation, contacts on said cylinders, feelers adapted for co-operation with the records, circuits associated with said contacts, and switches controlled by said i'eelers and arranged to eilect different circuit connections according to the position of the respective ieelers, said switches being arranged in groups each corresponding to the combination values oi a denominational number or to an indicating value, the end contacts of said contact cylinders being connected in series, ior the purpose of taking oi simultaneously numerical values having a plurality oi figures.

6. An electric control device for machines and apparatus of the class described used in connection with records, comprising a movable contact cylinder adjustable manually to different positions but stationary during normal operation, rows ci contacts on said cylinder, contact brushes adapted to engage said contacts, feelers adapted for co-operation with the records, pairs of contact members connectedv with said brushes, each member of a pair being connected with a different brush, a switch member for each oi said pairs adapted to engage one or the other member or said pair, and circuit connections including said switch members, contact members, brushes, and contacts, whereby such switch members will be caused to close different circuits according as they are thrown into engagement with one or the other member of a pair ot contact members.

7 An electric control device for machines and apparatus of the class described used in connection with records, comprising a movable contact cylinder adjustable to different positions but stationary during normal operation, longitudinal rows of contacts on said cylinder, means for adjusting said cylinder manually to ditlerent positions, ieelers adapted for co-operation with the records, circuits associated with said contacts. and switches operated by said ieelers and having two circuit-closing positions to close one circuit or another according to the position of the respective ieeler. 0

PAUL MANSEL. 

